The Supreme Court’s verdict on the Panama case may have left many with mixed feelings but the 549-page-long judgment chose a rather interesting way to begin its judgment on corruption allegations against the Sharif family — a reference to Mario Puzo’s novel, The Godfather which also went on to become Hollywood’s most famous modern classic.

PHOTO: TWITTER

“The popular 1969 novel “The Godfather” by Mario Puzo recounted the violent tale of a Mafia family and the epigraph selected by the author was fascinating,” the judgement read, leading readers to an epigraph at the beginning of the novel.

“Behind every great fortune there is a crime – Balzac”

The judgment goes on to explain how the epigraph was inspired by a sentence authoured by Honore de Balzac. The original quote: “The secret of a great success for which you are at a loss to account is a crime that has never been found out because it was properly executed.”

The court then observed how it was ‘ironical’ and a sheer coincidence that the present case revolves around the very sentence attributed to Balzac. We don’t know what to make of the reference but it definitely caught the attention of people on Twitter. Here are some reactions:

Judge to Kulbhushan : Any last wish?Kulbhushan: Want to hear the Panama Judgement before i die.Via @obaidkh

In a 3-2 judgement, the bench noted that at present there was ‘insufficient’ evidence to remove Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The JIT has been given two months to complete the probe into the premier and his sons Hussain and Hasan, all of whom have also been directed to appear before the JIT. The investigators will also have to present bi-weekly reports to a special bench of the Supreme Court.

Quite underwhelming. By pointing to such fictional works, the judges have come across as slightly non-serious and partial to one side. The judgement thus shows that they were convinced of the guilt solely on the basis of the petitioner’s loud machinations and not the legal aspects. Recommend